Treasury sets sights on smart-card, PKI use

The Treasury Department is reviewing strategies for using smart-card and public-key infrastructure technologies for electronic-commerce and e-government efforts.

The chief information officer's staff is working with the Secret Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to conduct a series of pilots, said Patricia A. Haverstick, assistant director of information technology information and program management in the CIO Office.

The pilots will examine the return on investment from using smart cards and a PKI, as well as biometrics for physical and logical access control, notebook PC security and inventory management, she said.

Besides the group working on the pilots, Treasury has brought together a team of security and technical representatives from all department bureaus to form the Smart Card and PKI Managers Forum. The Secret Service oversees the forum.

The forum assures information exchange across Treasury's bureaus and with other agencies, such as the Defense Department and the General Services Administration, Haverstick said. The forum members also will develop specifications and standards for using PKI and smart-card technologies across Treasury.